Theological exploration of the recognition of another

Recognition of the ‘other’ is a struggle for many people in Western political, social, cultural, and ecclesial communities. In this study, I take the current challenges of the ‘political recognition’ of the other as a departure point to offer a theological model of recognition that is marked by interrelationality. I argue that a comprehensive recognition of the other requires a broader perspective than the political. Moreover, this study suggests that any acts of recognition which emerge from a religious perspective need to engage with the social and political world—through mutual accompaniment—for the development of persons within communities. This study is interdisciplinary, utilizing narrative theory, cultural studies, and disability studies. It uses a constructive and hermeneutical method, rather than historical analysis. Thus, I explore contexts—narrative, vulnerability, and difference—that support dispositions and acts of theologically inspired religious recognition. Many critical theorists, such as Charles Taylor and Judith Butler, expound on the value of ‘political recognition’, and more religiously orientated academics, such as Risto Saarinen, communicate the need for religious recognition that begins with the conversion of the recognizer. Building on these points of view, I argue for a more theologically infused praxis of religious recognition in the formation of personhood within communities that is achieved through ecclesial conversion. I call this ‘recognitional accompaniment’. My study responds to Charles Taylor’s suggestion that religion may be one context that supports the wider recognition of individuals and minority groups. There have been recent advances within critical theory, which have sought to create a more comprehensive account of recognition, and some theologians and scholars of religion have tackled the absence of religion in recognition theory. While this growing interest in recognition acknowledges the relational aspect of personhood, it overly rests on a ‘turn to the subject’ or existentialist turn at the cost of delimiting the authority of the other. This study offers an alternative, theological exploration of recognized mutuality through interpersonal accompaniment.